Chay River - Dark Cave is good for

Chay River – Dark Cave appears in a strange jade green, merging with the green of the forest and imposing limestone ranges. Along the river banks are immense corn fields. All come together to create such a magnificent and poetic picture.

Why Chay River - Dark Cave is special ?

Next to Phong Nha, Dark Cave is the most popular tourism site in the area. It was first discovered in 1990 and opened up not long after that. The Dark Cave is the smaller version of the Son Doong Cave. The reason for the name is that there is no artificial light installed inside the cave and with its total length of 6 kilometers it’s nothing but darkness! Moreover, the rocks inside the cave are dark, some gray some black.

In 2014 a 400 meter double-zip line was built and is now used to enter the cave. The zip-line is the longest zip-line in Vietnam and the Phong Nha-Ke Bang Tourism Center received a Vietnamese Guinness Records award at the beginning of the Quang Binh 2015 Cave Festival which was a big success. During the cave festival a couple of new tours were launched by our company, including the brand new 6 kilometers Dark Cave exploration. This tour takes visitors from the back entrance of the cave (Thuy Cung) all the way to the main entrance of the cave!

What to explore at Chay River - Dark Cave?

The entrance of the Dark Cave is at the opposite river bank from the Zip-Line tower. The beautiful deep blue color of the Chay river will catch your eye while riding the Zip-Line and a short 20 meter swim is required to actually enter the cave after the ride. The cave is home to many lakes, with a water temperature of about 18 degrees. Inside the cave there are many unique things to see and experience! There is a natural mud bath at the end of one of the narrow passages and there are many ancient fossils to be found. The fossils are over a million years old! The natural mud bath is very good for the skin, and compared to a mud-bath in a spa this is just a fraction of the price.

Our guides will provide information about the history of the cave while exploring it. After successfully exploring the cave it’s time to take the kayak and paddle back to the boat station. Next to the boat station a smaller zip-line can be found, here participants will be able to actually release themselves in to the water. For those with enough energy, the adventure bridge will be a real challenge. Only a few people make it across every month, the adventure bridge was built during the Quang Binh cave festival and has since then attracted a lot of customers. Dare to try it?

Finally, when all the participants have used up their energy in the water games, it’s time to refuel at the Dark Cave restaurant. Our chefs prepare tasty traditional meals for a very reasonable price and the dining area has a relaxed and friendly atmosphere.